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Warriors (Bushi)

The word bushi (武士, warrior) is thought to derive from saburou hito, meaning "one who serves at one's side," and originally referred to people who attended and served the nobility. Over time, as armed conflict and the maintenance of order became necessary in the provinces, men who specialized in the use of force emerged — and these men came to be called bushi.

Title	Description
Takiguchi no Bushi 滝口の武士	Warriors who guarded the imperial palace under the Kurōdodokoro (the Emperor's Private Secretariat). The name Takiguchi is a poetic term for the drainage channel running beneath the palace; the warriors were quartered in a guardhouse near this spot. Although the Konoefu (Imperial Guard) was originally responsible for palace security, after the Kusuko Incident — a conflict between Retired Emperor Heizei and Emperor Saga — palace security came under the Kurōdodokoro and was entrusted to the Takiguchi warriors.
Hokumen no Bushi 北面の武士	Warriors stationed on the north side of the retired emperor's palace who guarded the retired emperor's residence. Established during the reign of Retired Emperor Shirakawa, who pioneered the system of cloistered rule (insei) — in which a retired emperor continued to wield political power from his private palace rather than the throne.
Saimen no Bushi 西面の武士	Warriors stationed on the west side of the retired emperor's palace who guarded the retired emperor's residence. Established during the reign of Retired Emperor Go-Toba, but abolished after the Jōkyū War (1221), in which Retired Emperor Go-Toba's forces were defeated by the Kamakura shogunate.